The present invention is related to power distribution systems and in particular to controllers employed in conjunction with power distribution systems.
Aircraft applications rely on electrical power distribution systems to power a variety of critical systems on the aircraft. Controllers, such as bus power control units (BPCUs) and emergency power controllers (EMPCs), are responsible for monitoring and controlling the operation of the electrical power distribution system. For example, a BPCU is responsible for monitoring operation of the power distribution system and providing commands to selectively control the operation of various relays and/or contactors to selectively route power through various buses. Similarly, an EMPC is responsible for monitoring and providing command instructions to relays and/or contactors within the emergency power system to selectively route power to desired buses. In addition, the EMPC may also be responsible for deploying an RAM Air Turbine (RAT) generator for the purpose of generating emergency power.
Both the BPCUs and the EMPCs require power to operation, typically derived from one or more of the power buses the units are charged with monitoring and controlling. A loss of power on all of the power buses results in an undesirable loss of operational power in the BPCUs and EMPCs.